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SL1 · June 13, 2012, 02:50 PM

The cartridge is definitely a .223 remington necked to .308. The 30 TCU was such a widcat that was sort of standardized after a while. But, there were others early-on that might have had the shoulder in a slightly different place or at a different angle, or with a different body taper on the case.

With an old custom barrel that was not stamped as "30 TCU", there is a significant chance that the chamber is not going to match the standardized dimensions exactly.

So, before ordering 30 TCU dies and finding that they don't work well, I suggest that you ask that wonderful aunt of yours if she can find the dies that her first husband used to load those 100 rounds. If so, you are in business. But, if not, at least you have 100 rounds of ammo that you know fit the gun. You can CAREFULLY measure those to determine if the standard 30 TCU dimensions are close enough to the what you actually have. If not close enough, then you will need custom dies.

SL1

June 13, 2012, 02:50 PM	#16
SL1 Senior Member Join Date: November 8, 2007 Posts: 2,001	Maybe TCU, but Maybe NOT The cartridge is definitely a .223 remington necked to .308. The 30 TCU was such a widcat that was sort of standardized after a while. But, there were others early-on that might have had the shoulder in a slightly different place or at a different angle, or with a different body taper on the case. With an old custom barrel that was not stamped as "30 TCU", there is a significant chance that the chamber is not going to match the standardized dimensions exactly. So, before ordering 30 TCU dies and finding that they don't work well, I suggest that you ask that wonderful aunt of yours if she can find the dies that her first husband used to load those 100 rounds. If so, you are in business. But, if not, at least you have 100 rounds of ammo that you know fit the gun. You can CAREFULLY measure those to determine if the standard 30 TCU dimensions are close enough to the what you actually have. If not close enough, then you will need custom dies. SL1